Recent socio-political events, both tragic and triumphant, throughout the world continue to articulate to the world that “race does matter.” From immigration to racial profiling and police brutality, Europe and North America are two of many other countries that are rife with racial tensions that are resulting in civil war and death, in some cases. While government officials and agencies are ignoring, minimizing, or trying to resolve these issues, communication scholars throughout the world are addressing these global issues in their scholarship. In order to contribute to these efforts, my colleagues and I are co-editing a special issue of the Journal of Intercultural Communication Research. We will feature research that addresses interracial communication occurring in a global or international context.

The outcome of the 2016 presidential election in the U. S., as an example, has revealed racial tensions amongst and between different racial groups. The idea of a post-racial country have been dismantled. Much of the contemporary dialogue surrounding the election has generated international discourse regarding racism, sexism, xenophobia, and other forms of systemic oppression. This phenomenon can be best understood through interracial/intercultural communication research, which entails the use of theories and the gathering of data to facilitate societal change. As communication scholar Jennifer Johnson (1992) succinctly explains it, the “centrality of communication [must be understood] as both a critical process in changing a world and a key to understanding the changes occurring in that world” (p. 39). To that end, this special issue will showcase a spectrum of methodologies that are used to enlighten audiences to the global nature of interracial communication from an international worldview or context. This collection of essays will demonstrate how differences are central to the production of scholarship that has implications for use in a real world context. It is our hope that this body of work also provide schools, organizations, and citizens with the tools necessary for moving theory into practice.

In keeping with the aims of the theme of this special issue, the following is a list of possible topics; however, it is not exhaustive. It is our expectation that each submission will address the global implications of interracial communication.
1. Social construction of interracial communication as a global phenomenon
2. Interracial communication within a multicultural context
3. Pedagogical approach to the internationalization of interracial communication
4. Interracial communication within the context of family
5. Intersectionality and interracial communication
6. Interracial communication and global citizenship
7. Interracial communication and colorism
8. Interracial communication and romantic relationships
9. Interracial communication and queer identity
10. Interracial communication and mass media
11. Critical race theory and interracial communication

Submission InformationManuscripts must be submitted online via the Manuscript Central website by September 15, 2017 for consideration. All submissions must adhere to the Journal of Intercultural Communication Researchstyle requirements. We are adhering to the blind peer review process; thus, we are requiring all authors to remove all l self-identifying references. We are requesting that submitting author(s) include the following statement on the title: “For consideration in the special issue on interracial communication.” All inquiries about this very important special issue must be directed to all three editors: Tina M. Harris, Carolyn Calloway-Thomas, and Eddah Mutua.